Description:
James (Jim) Callery of Cloonahee, County Roseernmon has made the largest private contribution to a cultural enterprise in the history of the lrish State. At the age of 82, he has in his fulllife been a hugely successful businessman, and used this success to save and preserve a vital historic country estate in lreland, opening it for everyone to enjoy. He has created the first and only lrish National Famine Museum and Archive- the largest collection of estate documents on the island of Ireland and certainly one of the largest, if not the ultimate collection of famine documents in the world, the study of which works towards the prevention of future international famines. Strokestown Park, in the midlands of County Roscommon, lreland, has been the beneficiary of one of the greatest acts of individual philanthropy for cultural heritage in the history of Ireland - the result of the munificence of one man, Jim Callery.